“Like most investments, development of a natural gas field can create substantial economic and fiscal benefits for a community. Exploration, drilling, production, servicing, pipeline development and operations, royalty payments, and other direct expenditures bring new income and employment to the region.” In the specific case of an estimated 2,000 wells in Broome County, “if the drilling activity is evenly spaced over a ten year period, spending at this level would support 810 … new jobs lasting 10 years. These 8,100 person-years of employment will pay almost $400 million in salaries, wages, and benefits for an average of almost $49,000 per job. In addition, drilling activity will create more than $605 million in property income in the form of rents, royalties, dividends, and corporate profits. Finally, gas well drilling activity in Broome County will produce $42.7 million in state and local tax revenues from property taxes, sales and use taxes, and fees for permits and licenses. About $20.5 million of these tax revenues will go to Broome County taxing entities.”

Kennedy also falsly asserts that there are terrible “health effects” from fracking and again the assertion is not backed up by facts.

Kennedy urges New York State not to aprove fracking “without the facts.” Well, the facts are available and well-known. If Gov. Cuomo decides to ignore the facts and keep the moratorium in place, he will be relegating much of his state to the economic doledrums and the population decline that has benn endured for some time already. But at least the elitists who don’t have to work for a living will be happy.